Rifiuto: Non Miriena
The Navy Yard,
Washington, D.C.,
Four Weeks Later
"First the plague, now radiation poisoning. I'm starting to think someone really has it in for me."
"Plague?" Neither answered her, and Ziva continued to sway side to side as she leaned against the side of the van, trying to ignore Tony's voice. She, Sarah and Tim had bid farewell to Eli and John at the airport three short days ago, returning to a routine that had been established in Israel- every night, before bed, she and Tim would read a section from The Dovekeepers. They had read and reread it in the three weeks since Nettie's death, finding comfort in the story of the place she had loved so.
"I was there too, you know. Right by the car, along with my wife." Tim snipped, hands in the pockets of the standard white jumpsuit they all wore. Ziva stopped her swaying, turning to her husband.
"We all were." She then returned to her swaying.
"But don't let that stop you from thinking about yourself- would you stop that?" Ziva stopped, meeting her husband's gaze. A heated glance passed between the couple, before Tony interrupted.
"This isn't about me. It's about my little DiNozzo makers. They've been nuked."
Ziva raised an eyebrow, it went even higher at her husband's reply.
"I know."
"Do you, Tim? I mean, sure your little ninjas are gonna be smart, but my kids had a shot at being really beautiful-" Quickly, Ziva pushed herself off the car, darting between the two men as she rolled her eyes and wandered in search of any sight of Gibbs. Not that she didn't want to join in the men's conversation- she didn't- but she wasn't particularly interested in listening to Tony lament about the possibility of becoming infertile; which, for the sake of the human race, she was kind of hoping would happen. But only kind of.
"Hopefully Gibbs will bring us some good news." Both men stopped sniping at each other to turn to her, even as the sound of someone running reached their ears. Before long, Ziva watched as Abby threw herself into Tony's arms, nearly knocking him to his butt. She only vaguely listened as Abby talked.
"You guys okay?"
She shrugged at the Goth. "You tell us."
"Yeah, you're okay." All four turned as Gibbs strode towards them, arm in a sling.
Hours later, once they'd returned home, after they'd eaten dinner, the pair read from The Dovekeepers for a while- a ritual that had started before Nettie's death, and continued on afterward- before going to bed, exhausted from the day. Ziva curled into Tim's arms, letting sleep and the steady rise and fall of his chest lull her to sleep. Nestled in his arms, she dreamt-
"Ima!"
She turned, to see a little girl rushed towards her. On instinct, as she'd often done with Tali, she knelt down, holding out her arms. But instead of small arms wrapping around her neck, the child went through her, a ghost only able to be seen, not touched. She turned, watching the child rush towards someone-
"Ima?" She stood, gaze going to the woman who scooped the little girl up, settling her on her hip. The woman looked up, before coming towards her. No, it couldn't be-
"Shalom, my Zivaleh." Rivka stood before her, the little girl balanced on her hip, smalls arms around her neck. The child looked like she had as a child- long, dark curls, dark eyes, olive skin, only instead of the jeans and graphic t-shirts Ziva often wore as a child, she was in a dress. There was a white headband in her hair, and she had pink tennis shoes on.
Ziva studied her mother- gone before her time, and yet, Rivka was as beautiful as the day she'd been born. Before she could open her mouth, Rivka turned, nodding for someone to join them; Ziva's heart constricted as Kathleen and Nettie soon came to Rivka's sides. The Irish beauty was dressed in what appeared to be some sort of costume, her curls teased high- for Kathleen had been an Irish dancing champion long before she married John, and Nettie looked ready to go on an excavation- she was as young and full of life now as she'd been when among the living. Slowly, Ziva forced herself to swallow the lump in her throat. "Aunt Nettie? Mrs..."
But before she could finish, someone called out, and she turned. "Zivaleh!" She stumbled back as the person threw their arms around her.
"T... Tali?" The woman slowly pulled away; it was indeed Tali, in the blue hijab she'd worn the day she died. And while she didn't look any older than sixteen, she had filled out, as though she'd grown up. "What... what is this place? Where am I?"
"Where do you think you are, Ziva?" Kathleen asked, as Ziva turned to her mother-in-law. The younger woman thought a moment, glancing around.
"I... I am not sure. Were I to guess, I..." She turned back to them. "Heaven?"
Tali chuckled, pulling out of her sister's arms and taking her hands. "Oh Zivaleh, you may believe in God, but you have never believed in Heaven. Tim married a contradiction in the most blatant of terms."
"Now Talia, it is not nice to pick on our sister." Ziva looked up as Ari joined them; he grinned at her, no longer the hardened killer that had been set on destroying their father, but the boy she and Tim used to know.
"Ari." Ziva threw her arms around his neck, and he hugged her close before pulling away. A moment passed, before she turned back to her mother, and the child settled on her hip. "Is this..." Ziva swallowed, reaching out to touch the child, but her hand moved through the girl. "Me? When I was-"
Tali laughed, and Ziva turned back to her. To hear that laugh after twelve years... it brought tears to her eyes. She reached out, pulling Tali back into her arms. She held onto her little sister for several minutes, before Tali pulled away, once more taking her hands.
"You are so silly, Zivaleh. How can that be you when you are right here?" Ziva glanced back at the child, confused, and after a moment, Tali spoke again, nodding to the girl. "She looks like you, ken, but she is not you."
"Then, who-" But before she could finish her question, the girl reached for her. Ziva, still holding onto one of Tali's hands, instinctively held out her arms to catch the child, only to feel the girl disappear as her small arms moved around her neck. The girl completely vanished, and Ziva's hands fell; Tali pressed their joined hands to her sister's abdomen, grinning, as Ziva caught her eye.
"You already have her name chosen, Zivaleh."
Her eyes snapped open and she sat up; Tim was sound asleep beside her, his arm around her waist, holding her to him. She glanced down at their joined hands, resting over her abdomen, memories of Tali holding her hand still fresh in her mind. She glanced over her shoulder at her husband's sleeping form, a small smile tugging to her lips as she leaned down and brushed a kiss to his cheek before climbing out of bed.
